Shiites Rising: Sect leaders craft message for masses

The leaders of a new 'axis of resistance' mix populism and Shiite theology to win broad support in a fight against America and its allies. Part 2 of two.

from the June 7, 2007 edition

Page 2 of 4

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It was aimed directly at rallying his troops with dramatic Shiite iconography. But even in that speech – and many subsequent ones – Nasrallah made deliberate references to non-Shiite faiths and their prophets, Moses and Abraham."This was really an effort by Nasrallah to claim a victory for all Lebanese. And he specifically went out of his way to [refer] to their iconic heroes," says Mr. Noe.

During the battle, even Hizbullah was taken aback by the number of non-Shiites who volunteered to fight.

"They were very surprised that people asked to join in the resistance, which is not new," says Patrick Haenni, Lebanon analyst for the International Crisis Group (ICG) in Beirut. "But more and more, they were asking to be in the front line, in order to be martyrs, and this is a new phenomenon."

And in Iran, Mr. Ahmadinejad is a leader unlike any the Islamic Republic has ever seen. He fashions himself as a working-class hero with his trademark beige zip-up jacket. He takes pen in hand, wading into crowds and writing down the problems of fellow Iranians.

With a wry smile, the president jokes with those mobbing him to "take a number" to await his attention; his office has collected 5 million letters, each with a unique request.

Still, Ahmadinejad is under fire at home for failing to fulfill promises of bringing Iran's oil wealth to the dinner table. Inflation is soaring and gas rationing has begun. Ordinary Iranians – as well as the president's many critics in the clerical class – are also concerned that Ahmadinejad's bellicose rhetoric has brought Iran much closer to open conflict with the US.

Reaching out to the lower classes

These populists also tap into Shiites' sense of victimization. Their skillful outreach to the Shiite masses fills gaps where governments will not or cannot go.

In Iraq, Sadr's Mahdi Army, though splintering in recent months, has been deepening its relevance to poor Shiites. It helps with everything from paying for funerals to mounting neighborhood security patrols. Sadrists are speaking of a new strategy to weed out extremists behind sectarian killings, and join Sunnis in a nationalist cause.

Its ambitions are modeled on Hizbullah, a secretive and sophisticated guerrilla force that in 2000 achieved something no other Arab military had accomplished: getting Israeli forces to withdraw from occupied territory."Hizbullah and the Mahdi Army are two sides of the same coin," Sadr told the British newspaper last week. "We are together in the same trench against the forces of evil."

That means emulating Hizbullah's social net that provides health-care, education, small loans, and housing for the poor. During the war with Israel, Hizbullah met the needs of hundreds of thousands of displaced Shiites with mobile medical teams and soup kitchens that served 50,000 hot meals a day in Beirut alone.

After the fight, Hizbullah bulldozers and workers – financed with millions from Iran – paid compensation to victim families and began to rebuild 15,000 destroyed houses. Nasrallah has tried to assuage the pain, blaming the US in a rally in January: "Yes, George Bush wants to punish you because you were … victorious," Nasrallah said. "It is prohibited to be victorious during the US era. You are forbidden from raising your heads or standing upright."

"The Americans now are in the heart of crisis," says Ali Fayyad, a Hizbullah politburo member. "Iran, Syria, Hizbullah, and [Sunni Palestinian] Hamas are an alliance. Their goal is to rebuild equilibrium in the region."And that requires Muslim unity. "We took a decision: It's a red line to have a conflict between Sunnis and Shiites," adds Mr. Fayyad. "In the whole region, we're trying to play a positive role ... to stop rising tensions."

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